How the world never runs out of clever ideas, I’ll never know, but I’m quite thankful. Displacements, an “immersive film installation”, is something that I wold dub clever. It’s not deep, it’s not impossible to figure out how it was done, it’s just a really good idea and the world is better off with it.

Displacements was first created in 1980 by artist Michael Naimark. Michael took what he thought was a typical American household, and filmed two performers on 16mm film, going about and doing random actions, interacting with the space. The then took that same space and spray painted it completely white, every nook and cranny. Then he took the 16mm footage he shot and projected it onto the white scene, creating this totally surreal environment with ghost-like people floating around. As the projection circles around the room you see a young girl spinning a globe until suddenly it’s gone, or a woman lying on a couch kicks the painting hanging above her with her toe, until that vanishes as well.

The video above is from 2005 when a friend of Michael’s suggested he tried to update what he did 21 years prior. This time around the people in the video are parents, and with them is their daughter. He also shot the footage digitally instead, which he notes, “was much more challenging.” I think this is so rad looking, it reminds me a lot of the Haunted Mansion in Disneyland, but you know, artsy.

Found through today and tomorrow

Bobby

2 Comments »

1. A canadian artist started doing these projections in the early 70’s. His name is Murray Favro and he started with a reconstruction of Van Gogh’s bedroom http://www.canadacouncil.ca/prizes/ggavma/2007/dz128183604623438096.htm.

   The room was built with the exagerated perspective, painted white, then the original painting was projected into the room. He did this with many original kitchen and household scenes as well.

   The guy you found totally exploded the whole concept by adding the motion but projecting colour onto white objects totally belongs to Murray.

   Great Post.

   Comment by Eli — June 16, 2008 #

2. Michel Gondry also did an interpretation of this for the white stripes

   http://youtube.com/watch?v=zh7UFi2b9xU

   awesome stuff,
   - TallFace

   Comment by TallFace — June 17, 2008 #

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